Destiny : Ever Stay Spring
by NoshMono
Summary: Oneshot, Completed Post GS. Sai Argyle was in ORB to visit his friend Kira as well as visiting ORB's war memorial. It was there that he met a girl with a flaming red hair that resembled his deceased exfiancee. Sai x Fllay
1. Spring

Sai Argyle stood in front of the ORB monument dedicated to those who perished during the previous war and prayed. Pray wasn't exactly a correct word to describe what he did; he was a free thinker. But despite that, he hoped that those souls would rest in peace. Among them was one whom he had loved. A tear rolled down his cheek. _"Fllay"_ He had lost her three times, one during the attack on Heliopolis, then to Kira Yamato, one of his best friends and finally to the Providence's DRAGOON shot. He didn't witness her demise as he was on Archangel at that time, helping the ship fight of Dominion.

When Cagalli's Strike Rouge returned with Athrun and Kira, he was at the hangar, hoping that Kira would come tell him the good news that he had rescued her. What he saw was a broken young man crying. When Cagalli explained that a shuttle Kira was trying to protect exploded, realization came to Sai over what happened. He found himself racked with sob and powerless to stop tears from coming out. He and Kira held each other together and cried. They have mended their friendship at the cost of one person's life, one that both of them loved.

As Sai looked at the morning sun rising from the horizon, he wondered what he should do next. He had visited the memorial early in the morning so that he could visit Kira at the orphanage. Maybe he would know where the others were.

"Is that the memorial for the dead?" a feminine voice behind him asked.

"Yeah," he answered, not really paying attention.

Someone walked next to him and clasped her hands contemplatively. "We the survivors should remember very well their sacrifice so that we value peace more"

"I agree with you," Sai said as he turned toward the woman. Then he felt his blood turn ice cold. The person next to him bore uncanny resemblance to Fllay, having flaming red hair and smoky grey eyes. He was so shocked that he didn't know what to do.

The woman finished her praying and turned toward Sai only to find him staring at her. "Is there anything wrong, sir?"

Sai was brought out of his stupor by her question. "No, nothing wrong" There wasn't even a small amount of recognition in her eyes when she looked at him. The woman couldn't be Fllay; just a look-alike who was brought there by Fate either to mock him or test him. Fllay was dead. Kira had witnessed her death in front of his very own eyes and was traumatized by it for months. "It's just that you remind me of someone I loved"

"Oh" The woman's face changed. "Where's she?"

"Dead" The answer was short and straight to the point.

"Sorry to hear that," the red haired woman said softly in regret.

"Not your fault"

The woman cocked her head to the side as if studying him. After a while, she spoke again. "Do I really look like that person?"

"Yes, but your personality is different"

"I see" she said and continued thinking. "I saw in your eyes that this person means a lot to you, and her loss has affected you" She gave a bittersweet smile. "I could even sense it because," she waved around her, "your emotion is so strong that it permeates around us. Despite that, I think it's unfair to both you and that woman" She saw that Sai was about to protest so she put her finger on his lips to silence him. "This woman, if she's as special as you describe, would have wanted you to be happy rather than torture yourself over her"

He nodded. When Fllay broke off with him to be with Kira, she had told him to forget about her. It was he who wouldn't let her go.

"Good" She smiled, still keeping her finger on his lips. "I have a suggestion. I know it is outlandish, so I don't really expect you to accept it. I want you to have a wonderful memory of her. So I'm willing to impersonate as her for today, but only on two conditions. One, we will not introduce ourselves so that we wouldn't know each other's name. Two, although I tell you to treat me as her, please don't call her name while we're together" The Fllay look-alike then withdrew her finger.

"Why?" he croaked.

"Because, I know that I will have a happy memory of what we will do together today that I may fall in love with you. If I know your name, then I'll probably search for you" She shook her head. "Such relationship wouldn't work because it will be based on me trying to replace her in your heart. I don't want to know her name because then I will be jealous of her"

"So what you're saying is you don't want it to progress into a relationship?"

"Yes, because it would be a farce" She shrugged. "In case you're wondering about my motive, let me tell you that I'm also doing this for myself. I don't have that many happy memories too"

Sai thought about what she suggested as the woman waited patiently for him. "Very well, I accept" He grinned. "Shall we seal this with a kiss?"

"We haven't even gone on our first date and you're trying to move up the base with me?"

"Guess not. I'm feeling hungry. How about we go for some breakfast?"

"Okay, my treat"

"No, let me pay for it"

They started to walk away from the monument. "I insist"

"I'm a gentleman and a gentleman always pays for his date"

She held up her hands in defeat and sigh. "Very well, I give up. But I will make you eat your words"

"No. I would rather have sausages, baked beans and some toasts instead"

* * *

Sai drank his coffee while watching the woman in front of him wiping her lips with a napkin. "Even you wiping your mouth look sexy to me" 

'Fllay' looked to him critically. "Is that why you're spilling some coffee on the table? Because you're looking at me?"

He looked at the spot she pointed. "Shit" As she giggled, he scrambled to search for something to wipe it with. In his haste, he knocked over his empty plate. It would have dropped on the floor if she didn't catch it. "Nice catch"

She looked a bit flustered. "Well, I…"

"Let me guess. You're a Coordinator, right? Don't worry. I don't have anything against Coordinators. In fact, some of my best friends are Coordinators?"

"Really?"

He smiled as he thought about Kira. "Yeah. The genes you were born with doesn't matter," He then put a hand on his heart. "What's inside here is"

She smiled in return. "You're right. You don't know how much your words mean to me"

"Don't mention it. So, where do we go from here?"

"How about we go for a walk?"

"That's a great idea"

* * *

He didn't remember the exact moment when he started holding her hand as they walked around the town, window shopping. Somehow it was a natural thing to do. Sai thought about Fllay. Although the two of them went out together a few times when they were in the Heliopolis, somehow there was a barrier between the two of them. Their parents seemed to take their engagements as a political partnership, exerting pressure on the two of them. 

"Are you listening to me?"

"Sorry?"

"Hmmph. Men. Coordinators or Naturals, they are the same. Always not listening whenever a woman is talking to them" 'Fllay' looked away in disgust.

"I'm really sorry. It's just that I feel that I'm on cloud nine because I'm walking with a beautiful woman beside me"

"Smooth. Real smooth answer. Well, I'll let that slide this time"

He put his free hand at the back of his head. "So, what were you saying just now?"

"I was asking you which one of these dresses looks better on me," she said while tapping on the windows.

He looked at the three dresses she was pointing at and tried to imagine her in each one of them. "Well… I'm not very sure. I have problem visualizing you in them"

She grinned evilly. "Don't worry. I can fix that problem easily," she said as she pulled him into the shop.

An hour later, Sai was waiting for her to emerge from a changing room.

She emerged wearing a pink sweater and jeans. "How about this?"

"Okay"

A few minutes later she came out wearing a green gown. "What do you think of this?"

"That's also good"

A few minutes later…

"How about this one?"

"The white blouse goes well with the blue skirt"

"This?"

"Looks good on you"

'Fllay' has stopped going inside the changing room, and showed him the clothes on the rack instead. "What's you opinion of this?"

"Nice"

"This blue jacket will match the dress, right?"

"Yup"

"Hmm… These vertical stripes bikini would make me look hot"

"Uhuh"

"The orange with green polka dot scarf matches my eyes, right?"

"You're right"

"This winter cloth is suitable for me to wear while I'm here in ORB. After all, ORB has tropical climate"

"Yeah, I agree with you"

"Maybe we can find some Bigfoot to jump on me and squash me like a bug"

"Seems good to me"

She rolled her eyes and dragged him out of the store.

Sai looked back at the store in confusion. "I thought you're going to buy some clothing"

"Well, I changed my mind. Why don't we go somewhere else?" Her eyes brightened up as she spied something in the distance. "How about we go there?"

The man beside her looked in the same direction. "There?"

"There"

"Okay"

* * *

"WEEEEEEE!" she screamed as the two of them were traveling down the rollercoaster at high speed. "Don't you think that it's fun?" 

"Yeah. Reminds me of maneuver Fllaga performed"

"Eh?" she asked, half distracted as the roller coaster were going through a loop.

"Feels like riding an airplane," he said amidst shouts from other people.

"Oh!"

The roller coaster jerked and slowed down while going up. "That wasn't so scary," Sai remarked. "I thought it was supposed to be higher than that"

"Higher?"

"Yes. I read that its main attraction is that it to go 300 meters high in the air and then drop almost vertically"

"Like the part we're going through?"

He looked around to see that the rollercoaster car was reaching its peak. "Uh Oh"

She grinned. "LET'S GO!"

The car began to move slowly downward.

"WAAAAAA!"

* * *

"ORB sure is amazing," Sai remarked as they were walking through the amusement park. "It managed to rebuilt itself in just a few months after the war" 

She nodded, looking distracted. "Um… Will you excuse me while I go to the washroom to powder my nose?"

"Sure. I'll wait you here" He grinned. "You're not gonna leave me now, are you?"

She punched his shoulder playfully before leaving him holding the teddy bear he had won for her. He whistled to pass the time when a group of people run to the spot next to him.

"I could have sworn I saw her just now," a man with a dark skin said.

"Are you sure, Youlan?" someone with a brown hair with a spot of orange asked.

"What's with that look, Dino? You don't believe me? I tell you, I really saw her.

A woman with a short pink hair with hands on hips looked around with irritation. "Damn that Meyrin! The first day of our vacation since we finish the academy and look at the trouble she's bringing us. Why bother carrying a phone if she didn't switch it on?"

"If only Shinn is here, he can easily locate your sister," Dino said.

"Yeah, after all, he's from ORB," Youlan supported.

"I know that," the woman said.

"Why didn't you ask him to come along with us, Luna?"

"I did ask him, but he wouldn't follow. Really, that guy makes me wonder" She sneered and said in a sing song voice, "Maybe he hangs around with the ol' stick in the mud too much"

"Please don't talk about me as if I'm not around," someone with a blonde hair said coolly.

"Rey!"

"After all, I follow all of you here, right?"

Luna smiled embarrassedly. "You're right. I apologize"

"Apology accepted. I know that you're worried about your sister"

"It's just that we're here on Earth and you know, with our training…"

"Shh!" Dino warned.

"Sorry"

"It's all right. We're in ORB, remember?" Youlan reminded.

Crossing his arms, Sai looked at the group of four people in amusement as they search for someone by the name of Meyrin. Youlan and Dino seemed to be quite careless and carefree, reminding him of what he was. The person named Rey was the voice of reason and maturity, a bit odd since he didn't look that old. Luna was quite spunky, with hair color resembling… Realization struck him and he couldn't stop a thin smile from forming on his lips. _"Meyrin"_

"I know!" Youlan exclaimed. "She was with this guy just now," he said while pointing toward Sai who was surprised that he was involved.

Rey turned toward Sai. "Excuse us, do you know anyone who goes by the name Meyrin Hawke?"

Sai thought about what to answer. "No, I'm afraid not" He told himself that he was telling the truth since he didn't know the name of the girl who was with him.

"Thank you very much," Rey said as he nodded slightly.

Sai saluted. In response, all four of them saluted back. His smile became bigger. They were in the military, probably ZAFT if his hunches were correct.

Realizing that they have been tricked, Rey gave a piercing look at Sai while the others were looking uncomfortable.

"At ease soldiers," Sai said in his best commanding tone, trying to copy what Fllaga would have said. He was rewarded with them relaxing slightly. "We're not in the middle of a war here" He smiled. "Now, if I see this Meyrin, I'll remember to tell her that you were searching for her"

"Please do that," Luna said gratefully. "Thank you"

"You're welcome"

With that, the group left and continued their search.

After a few minutes, Sai's date returned. "Sorry to keep you waiting. Girl problem"

"It's all right"

She noticed that he was smiling. "Did something happen while I was away?"

"Nah. Say, I don't mean to be nosy but did you come to ORB alone?"

"Why do you ask that question?"

"It just occurred to me while waiting that you didn't contact anyone until now"

"Why should I? I'm big enough to take care of myself. They know that," she answered while glaring at him.

"Okay, you win," Sai said trying to defuse the tension between the two of them.

"Then, to celebrate my victory, let's go to the hot dog stand"

"All right. Gentleman's treat"

* * *

She gritted her teeth in frustration as she looked at him grinning. "Wipe that smug off your face" 

Sai chuckled as he came to her, looking at the computer screen. "I can't help it you're firing at anything else that moves"

"I was trying to shoot you"

"Well, at least you have the highest score, beating all those people," he gestured at other players who wore a big look of disappointment on their face.

"Arggh! I don't care! Let's play again. I'll kick your butt this time"

They continued playing for half an hour again

"Arggh! I got fragged again!" she complained. All other players except Sai and her were grinning widely.

"You got me every time," Sai commented as he looked at the text box displayed in his computer. "Hmm… I win again, with a wide margin. Could it be the others were competing to get you that they left themselves open to attacks?"

"Ah! I'm never good in this game anyway," the Fllay look-alike said as she stood to leave the place.

"I'm not good in the other game I wanted to win: the love game," Sai said to himself. "Even when I win, I lose. And if I lose, I lose big time"

* * *

"They're so beautiful!" the girl gasped as she looked at the colorful flowers around her. "And this park, it's so large" 

"It's to be expected. After all, it's one of ORB's main attractions," Sai said while looking at the booklet they received when they went inside the horticultural park. "Being build on a reclaimed land 150 hectares in area size, this park has more than 30,000 different species of plants, including more than 900 kinds of roses"

"Really!"

"Plus the park has four own agricultural research centers"

"Wow. It must one of the biggest parks in the world"

"It's the biggest," he corrected her.

"Whatever. Anyway, I still can't believe how beautiful the flowers look"

He looked at the flowers and then at her, murmuring something.

"What did you say?"

"…………….."

Annoyance began to flash in her eyes. "Again… please. Louder this time"

"I said, you're more beautiful than the flowers"

She was unprepared for he said and stood there, blushing.

Wanting to dispel the awkwardness between the two of them, he offered, "Would you like a bouquet of flower. Lilies, perhaps?"

"No"

"No? I thought women like flowers"

"I like flowers, but only live ones"

"So…"

"I don't like picked flowers"

"Why?"

"Because I wonder how can people created a multi-billion industry giving dead things as present to woo opposite sex. I mean, if we want to do it, why not do it all the way? Why don't they sell a box full of dead squirrels or mice for me to give to you?"

The two of them laughed at her joke.

* * *

They stood at the esplanade, looking at the setting sun. 

"I'm right. It has been a long and wonderful day," she said as she turned to him.

"You reap what you sow," Sai answered.

"I guess this is where we part and go our ways," she said as she put her hand on his cheek tenderly.

"Aren't you're supposed to rush home only at midnight?" he protested.

"Look at my slippers. They're suede, not glass"

"But taxi is faster than a couple of mice that got turned into horses" Sai didn't want the moment to end.

"You right" She smiled. "However, there's something that isn't in the fairytale"

"What is it?"

"Close your eyes"

He did as he was told. "You're going to leave?"

"Yes. It would be better that you don't see me leaving"

"But…," his protest died as she put her finger on his lip again.

"Remember, this is supposed to be a happy memory for us," she whispered. "And, we can have more than one happy memories and it's not wrong to create a happier memory than this one with other people"

He nodded. Sai nearly opened his eyes in surprise when he felt her kissing him. Then his instinct took ever and he held her shoulders, deepening their kiss. They continued their kiss for a long time, with each eager to tell the other how they felt through it.

Then as sudden as it was, the kiss ended and she moved away. Sai remained in his place and didn't open his eyes. When he finally opened them, she had disappeared. He smiled softly.

"Here you are, Sai" a masculine voice caused Sai to turn toward the newcomer. He was sitting inside his convertible

"Ah, Kira"

Kira got down from his car. "I was worried when you didn't come"

"Sorry, I forgot"

Kira smiled. "That's all right. Where were you?"

Sai thought about everything he did with the mysterious girl that day and finally settled on an explanation. "I was creating a happy memory"

* * *

The red haired girl entered her hotel room and was surprised with the amount of boxes and plastic bags inside it. She looked at her roommate. "I can see that you're going to open up a store when we return," she commented dryly. 

"It's your fault for going anywhere you please, I got so worried that I got shopping binge" the other girl answered back. "We were looking franticly for you"

"And you found these bargains instead"

"Watch that tone with me!" the other protested, pouting. Then her face changed as she recalled something. "You wouldn't believe what we ran into today! We accidentally mistaken you for someone else!" She giggled. "She ended up going for a drink with us. Man, to think that we got the two of you mixed up"

"It seems that I'm not the only one with an interesting day"

* * *

1

* * *

**Author's note :**

1) Gundam Seed, Gundam Seed Destiny and all of the related materials presented in this story belong to their respective owners. I'm suppose to whine for them not to sue me, but what the heck. The most I'll got is probably a slap on the wrist. They have more important things to do.

2) Now, I'll make this clear. This is a oneshot. Really a oneshot. No amount of cajouling will get me to write more. I feel this is the best I can do for this story, so its better to end it like that. Romance is not my specialty... yet.

3) When I started, only two parties know the exact matchup. Me, and the Ultimate Coordinator up there. In the end, only He knows. I'm not even sure whether this is a Sai x Fllay or Sai x Meyrin (or Sai x OC for that matter). I'll admit that at first, I write this as a sidestory to Fallen Angel, cause Nanthakon V2.3 - DDR's suggestion to have a Sai x Fllay matching in Fallen Angel intrigued me . A good idea, only that I feel that the matchup wouldn't fit that story. This kind of story is a better stage for such a matchup .

4) Now, if there's anyone of you that really think that this story should continue, you can do so by simply picking up where the story ends. Is the red haired girl really Fllay, or is she Meyrin? (In case you're wondering how Fllay come back to life, read the first few chapters of Fallen Angel). If you're continuing, just email me and I will take down this story so that you can post your version without readers confusing the two versions.


	2. Winter

Seven years later, CE 80.

Standing at the observation deck overlooking Earth, Sai Argyle looked at his watch. "It's 23th December," he said wistfully.

"Yes, Minister Argyle," his aide, a soldier wearing a military uniform distinct from ZAFT and Earth Alliance said.

"Calling me by that makes me feel old. Just call me Sai when we're alone. We're supposed to be friends, and being so formal to me is not helping it"

"Yes…"

Sai smiled in irony. If they had met eleven years ago, he and his aide would have been enemies. At twenty seven years old, Sai Argyle has become the youngest minister of the United Governments Alliance Treaty or UGAT for short, a federation composing of both Earth and PLANTs nations established after the second war. Its inception was to promote peace and cooperation between Naturals and Coordinators, it has met with various problems and opposition from extremists from both sides. However, UGAT was mainly successful in its objective, maintaining peace by preventing crises from breaking up. As a Minister of Defense, Sai was tasked with the integration of armies from former Earth Alliance and ZAFT. It was a task that proves challenging, as both sides has been trained to think of the other party as enemy. Despite, he enjoyed his work because he knew that it is important for UGAT specifically and mankind in general. The work did leave him little time for anything else, though.

Sai turned to look at Earth. "Two days from now, it'll be Christmas. The snow has probably come down in my hometown"

"Sir… I mean… Mr. Sai, we also have snow here. The emulation system has been turned on since yesterday. It'll snow anytime soon"

As if on cue, a lone snowflake landed on the tip of Sai's nose, melting almost immediately. He looked up to see more and more snowflakes coming in from above. He smiled again, but this time it was a bittersweet smile. "It's not the snow, Dong Hwan. I'm just feeling a bit homesick, that's all"

"I understand, Sir… Sai" Dong Hwan was still having problem calling Sai by his first name. "You have been working hard and had little time to rest. Even though I'm a Coordinator, I don't think I can do even half you have accomplished"

"I can do what you can't, but there are some things you can do that I can't…," Sai said softly, trailing off.

"I beg your pardon?"

Sai shook his head. "No, just recalling something that my friend once said to me. Something about each of us being unique and has different strengths and weaknesses. Ah, please tone down your calling me Sir or Minister"

Dong Hwan nodded before saying, "Perhaps you would like to take a break for a few days to celebrate Christmas? If you want, I can delay your visit to the Orbital Defense Factory-03"

"Don't worry about me. It's not that I can share it with someone"

"You and me… Sai"

"Don't you have a girlfriend or something?"

"Was. We broke off because of incompatibilities"

"So, that means I don't you'll probably wouldn't be taking any leave until next year"

"Yes"

"Good. They say misery loves a company," Sai said jokingly.

"But I don't think they will like a corporation" Dong Hwan said, getting into the mood.

They shared a small laugh.

"Well then, let's go to ODF-03. We don't want to keep them waiting, do we?"

* * *

They were in a shuttle flying toward ODF-03, escorted by few Windams and Gouf. Suddenly the alarm inside it went off. "Minister Argyle, we're probably running into some problems," the pilot announced coolly, almost sounding bored despite the situation.

Sai and Dong Hwan's seats became encapsulated by protective walls to protect them should the shuttle explodes. "What happened?" Sai asked through the communication panel.

"A few unknown mobile suits coming our way. Probably from Neo-LOGOS"

"Our escorts?"

"Moving to intercept" the pilot replied. Suddenly he grabbed the control. The shuttle swerved to the left while releasing two capsules. The orbs burst and a field full of small red glowing orbs. Five missiles appeared from nowhere and rammed into the field, exploding upon contact. "Phew. The good thing we have Starburst equipped"

The fight between the shuttle's escorts and their unknown enemies escalated, with the enemy slowly winning with their technological and numerical strength. A shot hit one of the Windams in the cockpit, killing the pilot instantly while a Gouf was slashed into two. Despite that, the escorts fought back valiantly, taking down a few of them as well. But it was no mistaking that there fight will end soon and UGAF convoy would be destroyed. "Well, Minister Argyle," the shuttle pilot said. "I think that we'll be buying it anytime soon. Before that happens, the co-pilot and I would like to express my pleasure to have you and Mr. Dong Hwan on board"

"It's been our pleasure too" Sai replied. Dying with people he didn't even know wasn't on top of his to-do list, but even he could see that the situation was hopeless.

"It seemed that we have another newcomer to the scene…" the pilot announced. As the shuttle spun to evade a beam shot, the pilot continued, "It seems that our cavalry has arrived, incoming"

A screen in front of Sai's seat displayed the convoy's would be savior. UGXAT-16S Shadow Fallen. Aside from its name and number, there was no other known fact about the enigmatic mobile suit. Black in color and with storm grey lining, the mobile suit resembled its predecessor ZGMF-X16S Fallen. But instead of a three barrel beam machine gun, it was equipped with newly developed automated beam shotgun. And it was with this beam gun Shadow Fallen quickly blast an enemy mobile suit that was near the shuttle to oblivion.

"Shuttle-10, do you copy?" a voice that Sai seemed to recognize came on the speakers.

"This is Shuttle-10. Glad to see you here, Commander Yume. Your reputation precedes you"

As Shadow Fallen raised its Témoignage beam shield to protect the shuttle from a small positron blast, it fired again, this time saving a crippled Windam. "Thanks. How's Minister Argyle?"

"He and his aide is doing fine"

Sai listened to the conversation and felt strange. He was sure that he knew Fallen's pilot, but there was no name that came to his mind.

Fallen quickly make a short work of the remaining enemy mobile suits, destroying them in less than five minutes before setting off in an unknown direction. It stopped at a spot and pointed its gun in the middle of nowhere. Sai was wondering what its pilot was thinking when slowly, a large silhouette began to emerge. To his utter shock, it was Yamashita, the Neo-LOGOS's flagship. Fallen was pointing its gun at the bridge, guaranteeing that the ship would be instantly destroyed if it tried to do anything funny.

"Shuttle-10, please remain here. My ship will arrive shortly. Then I'll escort you to ODF-03," Fallen's pilot instructed.

"Roger"

Five minutes later, another ship appeared on the scene. Sai recognize it as a Cherubim III class ship. It quickly launched its mobile suits and surrounded Yamashita. Meanwhile, Shadows Fallen disengaged and moved toward the shuttle and its remaining escorts. Then, they set out for ODF-03. The rest of the journey was uneventful, probably because the capture of Yamashita has a very big effect on Neo-LOGOS. The black mobile suit escorted the shuttle until they were 50 kilometers from the factory. Fallen stopped and raised its hand before turning to fly toward another direction. As it became smaller and smaller in Sai's view, he wondered who was the one piloting the mobile suit. No matter, he decided. He can find out about this later.

* * *

Sai raised his eyes in surprise when he saw the man who was waiting for him at ODF shuttle bay. "Commander Fllaga!"

The man shook his finger. "No, no, no. I'm not Commander Fllaga"

"But…"

"It's Admiral Fllaga to you, Minister Argyle, and don't you forget it," he said seriously. A second later, the look disappeared and was replaced by a boyish grin. Despite the rank, Fllaga still hasn't changed much. "Good to see you, Sai," Fllaga said while patting Sai's back good-naturedly, earning a frown from Dong Hwan for his lack of respect for protocol. The blonde admiral seemed to notice it and said to Dong Hwan. "Don't blow an ion accelerator over it. God knows how many times I save your minister's butt from washroom duty"

Sai smirked. "Actually, you often asked me to fill in your duty"

"Fillin schmillin. Let's not be picky about our past, shall we?"

"Right… Dong Hwan, this is Admiral Fllaga. Admiral Fllaga, this is Dong Hwan"

The two of them shook hands.

"By the way, where's Murrue?"

Fllaga looked at his watch "Well, since it's still early, she'll still be sleeping. With beautiful three girls and two handsome boys she's taking care off, I figured she needed the rest"

"Wait… I don't know you have two boys"

"Nope, only one" Fllaga flashed his rogue grin.

Then Sai understood what Fllaga meant. "Oh, and I bet one of that handsome boys has been tiring her out last night"

Fllaga whapped Sai's back. "Atta boy. A few more days here and you'll be as cool as me"

They began to float away from the hangar to Fllaga's office. While on the way, Sai remembered about the earlier fight he was involved in. He was curious about the mobile suit that escorted them to the base. "Fllaga, surely you know about what happened earlier?"

The admiral shrugged. "Yeah, so what's about it?"

"Shadow Fallen" Few words conveyed so many questions.

"A multi-role mobile suit, built based on its ZAFT predecessor when the later got marooned at the end of the second war. It's stationed on Berhard Nobel, a Cherubim III class ship which is supposedly commanded by the famous Athrun Zala. Engaged in various secret insurgency and peacekeeping missions. The mobile suit and its carrier ship are classified secret and UGAF doesn't admit its existence" They stopped by an elevator and Fllaga pressed a button. "It was listed few websites, along with some 'unconfirmed' stats and pictures"

Sai sighed. "I suppose there will be a leak from an unnamed source that Yamashita has been captured, maybe not more than a few lines on those websites?"

"Nah. Someone will make a claim about it in one of the chat channels"

"I love propaganda," Sai said sarcastically.

"Hey, whatever that works. That mobile suit has become one of our symbols for peace"

"How about the pilot?" Dong Hwan interrupted. "Commander Yume. We know that it's not her real name. Who is she?"

"Now, that information is really classified"

They entered the elevator. As the elevator moves, Fllaga explained, "Even the Minister of Defense doesn't have the authorization to that file. You have to replace President Ghazali if you want to know"

"But you know?" Sai asked.

Fllaga gave his mysterious smile. "Yup. And in case you're wondering, it's not Kira. He's still at ORB, a doting father and a peace advocate"

"Kira is male, Fllaga," Sai commented dryly.

"Well, I was not convinced until Lacus gave birth to little Shizuka. But I wonder…" Fllaga stopped, letting the hidden question slide.

"That's a cruel joke on behalf of our friend"

Fllaga help up his hands defensively. "Come on, Shizuka is the female version Kira. There isn't even an iota of a doubt of who is her father. Come, let's get those electronic forms filled in and I will give you a tour of the whole place. I want to show you where they serve the best real steak, flown from Junius 5 and prepared by the best chef from Paris"

Sai and Dong Hwan quickly went through their work after they have checked in a hotel in the colony linked to the factory. After they have finished, Fllaga, true to his promise gave them a tour of the colony. After having their dinner, Fllaga suddenly received a call. After putting down the phone, he looked at his two guests apologetically. "Sorry. Something very important just came up. I have to go now"

"Don't worry. We'll know how to get back," Sai said.

Fllaga nodded. "I'll see you later" He was about to leave when he stopped and turned toward Sai, "You know, there has been a nasty lie going around in the city that Bernhard Nobel docked at a nearby secret hangar just an hour after you arrived"

"Oh, is that so?"

"Since it's a lie, I personally think that you wouldn't find any crew from the ship going around the city"

After Fllaga has left, Dong Hwan decided to return to the hotel, leaving Sai who decided to take a stroll around the colony's park. The park was empty at night, with lights illuminating the pathway. Sai wasn't worried about possible mugging; colonies have almost zero crime rates since they have very harsh penalties against criminals. After all, all of its inhabitants are working and their welfare was looked after. Sai looked at his watch. 9.23 p.m. It was time to go back to the hotel. Just as he was crossing a road, he saw something that caused his blood to turn cold. It was her, the red haired he met a few years ago. He rubbed his eyes. She has disappeared. Unnerved, Sai hastened his steps to the hotel. He'll need a stiff drink to unwind.

* * *

Fllaga shook Sai hand. "I'm sorry that I'm getting rid of you sooner"

"Ha. Ha. I'll be around sooner than you think," Sai said as he entered the shuttle.

"Sent my regards to the bigwigs on Earth. Tell them to give me a year's bonus"

"Fat chance," Sai answered as the shuttle closed.

The shuttle ferried slowly out of ODF-03 before engaging its boosters, moving to Earth. It was joined with a familiar mobile suit.

"Fallen," Sai said.

Fallen's pilot called over the radio. "This is Yume. I'm going to be your escort for your trip to Earth" Fallen flew beside the shuttle.

Sai smiled as he looked out of the window. He would find out about her after all.

* * *

It took all of his political clout to keep Fallen and its pilot at the base. However, he was having no luck in trying to meet its pilot. Being a member of FAITH, she wasn't tied by normal military regulations. She could do anything she wanted, even refusing to meet the President if she wanted to. And she exercised that right by making herself scarce whenever Sai was around. It was frustrating him to no end.

Finally decided to leave it at that, Sai decided to go to a nearby café. He declined to be driven there as he wanted to walk around. After all, it has been awhile since he experienced winter on Earth. The snow on Earth was better than the one on PLANTs, he told himself. After all, there's no place like home. After ten minutes walk, he arrived at the café. It was there at the pladce when he saw her again. The red haired woman from his past. She was drinking from a cup of coffee.

"Hello again, Cinderella"

She looked at him in shock before storming out of the café. Sai promptly chased after her. Despite being a woman, she was very fast. Fortunately for Sai, she tripped on something and fell to the ground. He managed to catch up with her, panting. "I was just saying hello. Why did you run away from me?"

She looked away, not wanting to answer the question.

Sai sighed. "Please tell me. Who are you? No, don't tell me your name is Yume"

She looked down. "Does it matter? Either way, you wouldn't like the answer"

He shook his head. "In order to heal, we must be hurt first"

She turned her head and looked at him, not caring about a lone tear coming down her cheek. "Are you sure you want to know?"

Sai wiped away the tear using the back of his hand. "Yes"

The woman smiled bittersweetly and took a hold of his hand, pushing it away slowly. "When we met in the ORB that time, I really didn't remember who you are, Sai"

It took a few seconds for Sai to process the information she told him. "Fllay," he whispered hoarsely.

Fllay nodded.

"How? How did you…"

"I was saved by those LOGOS bastards" Her eyes held pains as she continued on, "I don't think I can tell you what they did to me. I was trained to be one of the next generation Biological CPUs. That was why I had faster reflex. You saw how I catch the plate. And I guess that you wouldn't be surprised if I tell you that I'm Fallen's pilot"

He nodded.

"Cherubim freed more from their clutches. When I met you at that time, I was with one of the crews. Cherubim's captain was hoping that I will remember something or someone might recognize me" She laughed emptily. "I should have trusted my instinct when it told me to stay with you"

Sai heard her explanation in silence. "So now you remember everything"

"Every single thing. Even me betraying you and using Kira" She couldn't stop torrents of tears running down her face. "Sai," she whispered. "I'm sorry"

He didn't know how to react to her crying. But after a while, he put his hands on her shoulders and pulled her into a hug. "There, there," he said to Fllay, trying to comfort her.

"I was mean to all of you," Fllay said, between sobbing.

"It was in the past, Fllay. I don't hate you for that"

"Really?"

"Yes" he said, lowering his voice. "All of us were foolish that time. It leaves a bad memory in our mind, but that's okay as long as we grow wiser from it" He put his thumb on her chin. "And it's not wrong to create a happy memory in spite of what happened"

When she heard it, her eyes became wide. It was what she told him a few years back.

Sai smiled softly. "I was told about this gem of a wisdom by someone I liked along time ago. She also said that it isn't wrong to create happier memories with other people. I agree with her, but I would like to add to her words. It's also not wrong to have happier memories with the same person" He lowered his head and captured her lips in a kiss. After a while, she responded to his kiss, embracing him passionately. Despite the snow falling around them, they felt warm. They may not be together forever, but they will create happier memories while they still had each other.

* * *

1

* * *

**Author's Note (25 December 2005)**

1. I know I said that the previous chapter was the last one, but I decided that I need some practice in writing romantic scene. Oh well. The main problem with the story still plague me though. Two days ago, when i started writing for this chapter, I was planning 4 chapters for it, one for each season. with this being the second one. So it's supposed to be in this sequence : Spring, Winter, Summer, Autumn. In each chapters, some GS and GSD characters will be making cameo appearance. Some a bit of crisis here and there, and Sai would finally be together with his girl in chapter 4. But I go blank in the middle of the chapter and end up writing up the final scene from the fourth chapters. So, a two chapter story it is. Sorry for a not so satisfying ending.

2. Yup, I decided that this is a Sai / Fllay exclusive. And this story is an AU of Fallen Angel which is also an AU. Thanks to Zidane for Shadow Fallen name suggestion. For some of you readers who also read Fallen Angel, please not that this story diverged from it.


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